However, the stranger is shortly found violently murdered in Hannay's flat.

Hannay who's not the type to shirk adventure, obliges. One evening in London, Richard Hannay, recently returned from Rhodesia, is accosted by a desperate stranger who begs for shelter as he fears for his life. The surprisingly slim novel (it has just 100 pages) is a quick but exciting read. While recovering from a bout of illness connected with his chronic duodenal ulcer problem, Buchan wrote The Thirty-nine Steps, the first of a series featuring the intrepid Richard Hannay. He wrote his first novel, an adventure tale, in 1910, worked on creating war propaganda for Britain during World War I. He served in South Africa and on his return to London, became the editor of a prominent newspaper. He won several prizes at Oxford for his essays and poetry and embarked on a diplomatic career. Born in Perth, Scotland, he developed an early love of nature which features prominently in his writings. John Buchan, the author, was a Scottish writer and historian who also had an illustrious career as the Governor General of Canada in 1935. It is also notable for being the literary progenitor of the spook novel that typically features the secret operative on the run, determined to unravel a world domination plot. The Thirty-nine Steps, by John Buchan is a spy classic entirely worthy of its genre and will delight modern day readers with its complicated plot. The typical action hero with a stiff upper lip whose actions speak louder than his words, a mysterious American who lives in dread of being killed, an anarchist plot to destabilize Greece, a deadly German spy network, a notebook entirely written in code, and all this set in the weeks preceding the outbreak of World War I.

The 39 steps by john buchan